Palm Beach pays $27,000 to officers for Trump visits in February

Monday

The town spent nearly $27,000 in February to pay police officers for security and traffic management related to President Trump’s visits to Palm Beach, according to a town report.

A big chunk of the additional police time and pay went for policing a Feb. 4 protest against Trump on the Southern Boulevard Causeway, along the route between the Palm Beach International Airport and Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. That cost a total of $13,961, including $10,243 for overtime.

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A Palm Beach Police Officer directs traffic at the intersection of Royal Palm Way and Cocoanut Row on Feb. 10. (Meghan McCarthy / Daily News)

Daily News Staff Writer

During the month, 56 officers were paid from one to 16 hours under a pay code set aside for "POTUS" visits. They were mostly for patrol, with some from parking enforcement, the detective bureau and other areas.

About half of the $26,787 was paid at the time-and-a-half rate for overtime, and the remainder at a regular rate. The report was for Nov. 8 through March 2; but all the hours listed were between Feb. 3 and Feb. 20.

The department is tracking the time and coding it in case it is reimburseable, Public Safety Director Kirk Blouin said Friday. But Blouin didn’t hold out much hope for that.

"I’m not expecting to get reimbursed for any of it," he said. "It’s never been done before."

Palm Beach police play a supporting role in securing the president while he’s in town. The responsibility falls mostly to the U.S. Secret Service and Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, which has so far racked up $1.5 million when Trump comes to town. Sheriff Ric Bradshaw has estimated the presidents’ visits cost $60,000 a day in deputy overtime.

The county has written members of its congressional delegation seeking help as it tries to get reimbursed for Trump-related expenses.

Congress has set aside $7 million to reimburse local governments for Trump-related expenses. New York City, where the president also has a residence, has already made its pitch to be reimbursed for $35 million, but has received nothing.

"It’s my understanding that there is no evidence anywhere of a local government — county or city — having been reimbursed for a presidents’ visit," Town Manager Tom Bradford said. But "if we are ever eligible for reimbursement, we will certainly want it."